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New member and confused

I've been fighting with myself to join LLL. My biological daughter is now 21 and I've induced lactation with the hopes of having a newborn in about four months.

I've got a decent enough supply through Dom, pumping and herbs but I've got Estrogen Dominance and a new holistic ob/gyn who irks me (I've since changed doctors).

We've worked hard to induce lactation and I can't just take a pill for issues when it may affect my lactation for our child.

He gave me a prescription for progesterone because he said I'm not ovulating. I have no signs of perimenopause or other illnesses and wanted to take a holistic approach to my progesterone level but all the herbs I've read about actually inhibit lactation. My cycles are regular (except the last one was six days late and we were hoping), aren't particularly heavy (maybe one day of heavy bleeding) and last 5 days. I'm not all together sure why he is pushing this progesterone after I explained this to him.

My questions are:

1. Could my estrogen dominance come from my induced lactation
2. Will estrogen dominance hurt me in the long term
3. Would the prescription for progesterone interfere with my lactation
4. Any herbs out there that can increase my progesterone

I would have asked him but this doctor actually told me that he doubted I would ever be able to induce lactation. My boyfriend said I should have squirted him.

Re: New member and confused

Welcome!

I second Paige's question: is your goal to adopt, or to adopt and/or conceive? If you want to conceive, it is possible that lactation is actually inhibiting your ability to do so: many women experience some degree of decreased fertility while nursing because prolactin (the milk hormone) inhibits ovulation.

1. Could my estrogen dominance come from my induced lactation

Since "estrogen dominance" is really just a catchy term for "having a high estrogen-to-progesterone ratio", yes, it seems quite possible that lactation is contributing to an altered hormonal ratio.

Frankly, I find the whole "estrogen dominance" diagnosis a bit fishy. A woman's hormonal balance is constantly shifting- estrogen levels rise in the first part of your cycle, driving ovulation, then decline as progesterone increases. So during some parts of your cycle, you naturally experience high estrogen, and during other parts, you naturally experience low estrogen...

If you have a 21 year-old daughter, I am guessing you're in your mid-late 30s or 40s? If so, it is possible that you are getting towards pre-menopause, at which time it is normal for your estrogen and progesterone levels to decrease as ovulation slows down. To determine if this is the case, I would recommend seeing a good endocrinologist/reproductive endocrinologist instead of or in addition to seeing an OB.

2. Will estrogen dominance hurt me in the long term

If your high estrogen-to-progesterone ratio is being caused by lactation, I doubt there is any risk of long-term harm to you.

If it isn't, well- it seems there is some evidence that too little progesterone can cause ill effects over time. But I don't know if there's any data suggesting that the natural decline of progesterone levels that happens over time as we approach menopause is in any way bad for us.

3. Would the prescription for progesterone interfere with my lactation

Quite possibly. Progesterone inhibits lactation, and since progesterone is the primary hormone responsible for pregnancy, it is the reason why many women lost their milk supplies during pregnancy, and why some women who take birth control pills (which contain synthetic progesterone) experience decreased milk supply.

4. Any herbs out there that can increase my progesterone

I found this article online. I can't vouch for it. But it does suggest a one simple step you can take, which is to limit your intake of foods that contain estrogen-like chemicals. (Soy would be a good place to start, as it is a rich source of phytoestrogens.)

Re: New member and confused

We met a young lady that is pregnant and was in no position to keep the child. We struck up a great relationship with her and went forward with adopting her child. She's young and has a tendency to swing back and forth on the adoption (I certainly understand that). We have done all the legal footwork (forms, contract and I hate saying that but it is what it is).

It just has us a bit frightened. We were told that I wasn't able to conceive and we haven't really tried as we are anticipating the adoption in a few months.